English Premier League: Arsenal vs. Fulham odds, picks & prediction
Fulham put together an impressive showing in 2022-23. The Cottagers had spent the previous four seasons yo-yoing between the Championship and the Premier League, but this time they stuck by finishing in 10th place with 52 points and a +2 goal difference. Not too shabby for a team that was one of the favorites for relegation before a ball was kicked last August.
The Cottagers and manager Marco Silva deserve plenty of credit for their performance last year, but there were some signs that the team ran hot and was dancing on a volcano heading into the new campaign.
Arsenal vs. Fulham Pick: Analysis
Fulham’s defense bent but didn’t break last season, conceding 53 goals (10th-best in the Premier League) despite allowing 63.8 expected goals. The Cottagers were quite lucky not to have had to fish the ball out of the back of their net more often in 2022-23.
And even if the defense was mediocre, Fulham’s attack was pretty strong and the goal-scoring prowess of Aleksandar Mitrovic helped to cover any blemishes. But Mitrovic has now moved to the Saudi Pro League, leaving the Cottagers without a reliable source of goals to help provide cushion for a defense that is still bleeding scoring chances.
Through two matches the Cottagers rank last in the Premier League with 6.4 expected goals allowed against Everton (who somehow didn’t score despite posting 2.7 xGF) and Brentford.
Fulham now will have to take a massive step up in competition with a trip to the Emirates to take on Arsenal, the second-favorites to win the Premier League behind Manchester City.
Although they are 2-0-0, Arsenal has yet to put in a noteworthy performance. The Gunners took care of Nottingham Forest, 2-1, in their opener and then were able to eke out a 1-0 win at Crystal Palace on Monday Night Football. Arsenal has only created 2.8 expected goals in the first two matches, but part of that mediocre output is due to score effects. The Gunners never mind playing things close to the vest when they have the ball with a lead and they were up 2-0 early on Nottingham Forest and never really pressed too hard for a third score.
I’d expect the offense to come a little bit easier in this match for the Gunners.
Whereas Forest and Palace are happy to sit deep and ugly things up, Fulham are a more frenetic side that wants to keep things moving. That should make them pretty easy to overwhelm for Arsenal, who have the playmakers to unlock a defense that is out of sorts.
In short, Arsenal should be able to name their score on Saturday morning and I like a bet on the Gunners to go over 2.5 goals on their own.
Arsenal vs. Fulham Pick
Arsenal Team Total Over 2.5 (-115, DraftKings)
The Inquirer is not an online gambling operator, or a gambling site. We provide this information about sports betting for entertainment purposes only.
